Top spot means a week off - but is that good or bad?

There have never been any prizes for finishing top of the table in Super Rugby.

However, apart from the obvious bragging rights, the reward for finishing high on the table and for consistency has been expanded this season with both first and second getting a week off.

There is, of course, also the major benefit for the organisation in hosting a semi-final and the non-budgeting revenue that comes with it, although normally it’s never as much as you read because you still have all the costs.

A bye week at this time is one of the big debates and people often argue what is more important – continuing your momentum or being fresh and rested. I have already fielded commentary questioning the benefits of this part of the “prize” and for me it’s a terrific reward and extremely timely.

It would seem wherever you look this year, there is physical damage to all playing squads. It’s going to take a number of years for everyone to get used to the expanded Super Rugby format which is six weeks longer, and you can add an extra month to that next year.

Gaining seven days’ respite and valuable rehabilitation time is a significant benefit. Healing time cannot be fudged greatly but there is the potential for confidence to grow among players if their rehab program isn’t rushed.

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Getting a couple of starting players back can be a bonus but it does come with a caveat.

In my mind there are three stages – fit to train, fit to play and fit to dominate.

‘Fit to train’ means a player has recovered enough to participate in training, but with restriction. The player can acquire knowledge but can’t perform all functions unrestricted.

‘Fit to play’ is preferred because the player can perform all their functions under game conditions and therefore are ready to go.

The one that gets forgotten often due to pressure is ‘fit to dominate’. This gets compromised by the length of the player’s injury. Match fitness may have waned, particularly if it’s a leg injury, and this limits the ability of the player to match the game speed and duration. This is a tricky one for the coaches as you might need to cover them with replacements and their timing may be astray.

So far this season we have had three bye week scenarios and have managed them all with a win at the end.

How hard you work is critical during the training stages but you need to get to the end of the 14 days with enough petrol to get the job done.

Underestimated is the value of doing nothing. Mental freshness is as important as the physical and sometimes this gets forgotten as coaches like to organise the detail.

It’s hard to not do extras when you have more time.

Going through the motions at training is also to be avoided so having meaning and purpose is essential. Players can smell ‘padding’ at the end of a hard season.

The real difference with the bye this week is we do not know the team we will play at the end. Effectively, honing in on our opponent is restricted to the second week.

You could practice for three opponents, which would be ineffective, or you can practice on your own game in week one and you opponents in week two. Happily for us we only ever do one week strategy preparations as this limits the information that needs to be effectively absorbed to a manageable amount.

Nothing invokes stress like too much information. Knowing your opponent too well will also create a level of comfort that is undesirable. Remember rugby is a chaotic game that has some givens and not a lot of predictability – it does not pay to be too fixed in your thinking.

We will of course need to manage the promotional load that goes with a big game. Rather than close the doors because it is a big game, we will in fact become more accessible.

It’s hard to sell a story if you are no where to be seen. We will concentrate our efforts in week one in this space where we can, and try to have week two as normal as possible, if there is such a thing.

We have done well on the field this year but have worked just as hard off the field to promote the game. The success of 2011 is the combination of both, this bye week has just allowed us to catch our breath.